September
by WhisperedSilvers
Summary: "I'm losing my goddamn mind." He said, pinching the bridge of his nose. - Sakura/Gaara


September

**X.** **WhisperedSilvers**

"_I'm losing my fucking mind." He said, pinching his nose._

XOX

* * *

I. September

* * *

He hated English, always have always will. It was the first day of September, his professor was late and he didn't even have _coffee_. Now Gaara is a very dangerous individual when he does not have his morning brew. Contrary to belief Gaara does need caffeine to run efficiently, but his temper was running very thin. The door slammed open, the professor with his tie skewed, sweat beading at his temple and a very sheepish smile walked into the classroom.

"Sorry, I am late. You would not believe traffic today." He apologized awkwardly, he set his brief case on his desk before turning to face his class. "Today we are going to start our semester project. Yes, occasionally you will have to write a term paper, you will have to read books, you will have to do research papers- but that will a different assignment all together. But the semester project is due at the _end_ of the semester. It is a new curriculum the English teachers started this year; no final." He explained, he grabbed a pouch from inside his third draw and placed it on the table.

"Inside this pouch is two numbers of the same, twenty-eight in total. Each person with the corresponding number are partners for this semester. Simple? Grab a number, find your partner and take a seat, for I will explain the rest of the project."

Gaara grab a piece of paper from the clothed pouch and looked back into the room of bumbling people looking for the partners. He sighed inwardly and began making his way towards the crowd.

Number Nine.

"Number Nine?" A bright voice asked towards the center of the room, her friends shook their heads and she resumed looking for her partner. Gently he tapped the person on her shoulder, she turned around her sunny jade orbs met his deep moss ones.

She had bright pink hair that nicked just under jawline, very petite structures, and large eyes. But maybe that's what made her so _bright_. "I'm Sakura, it's nice to meet you."

She smiled, and it made Gaara's teeth ache.

"Gaara." He offered softly, and they both sat in the third row, the booth neatly tucked next to window. He looked over at her side, her pen in one hand and her coffee mug in the other.

He glared at the offending inanimate object; the source of all his frustration.

"Your assignment is to write a book. A book with the theme _'What you want and what you need.'_ The genre does not matter to me. It must be less than one hundred pages. This is college, not high school." The professor said sternly.

The class began to murmur among themselves and Gaara sighed, this time aloud.

"You okay?"

Gaara blinked, "Yes, why?"

"Well you've been eyeballing my coffee for the rest of the lecture and you didn't even take any notes." Sakura responded observingly, her fingers twitched at her coffee mug before passing it towards him, "Take it, it looks like you need it."

Gaara was quick to object, but she cut him off. "Just drink it."

He sipped the mug and smiled.

* * *

II. Heart-stud

* * *

"How do you want to do this?" She asked suddenly. The lecture ended a half hour ago and Sakura suggested they grab a coffee. Starbucks was just right around the corner and he was _craving_ a latte.

"Do what?" For a second he was blinded at how pretty she was, it never occurred to him how she looked- until, he actually _looked_.

"The project?" She sounded confused, but her words made sense.

"How about we split it, fifty each." Gaara retorted, his mind calculating how much time he should be spending on the project.

"Alright." Sakura giggled and he frowned. Was his face that amusing? She lifted her forefinger to his nose and swiped it. He was baffled to say at least, but understanding dawned on him when he saw the whip cream.

"Sorry, but it was bothering me." She smiled and Gaara's cheeks tinted pink.

* * *

III. Sibling love

* * *

"Something you want and need, huh?" Temari asked, his forefinger poked her chin.

"Your teacher sounds evil." Kankuro snorted.

Gaara scowled, "Its due at the end of the semester."

"You have plenty of time." She remarked, her teal eyes sparkling.

"It's a hundred pages." He deadpanned, his older siblings were not helping whatsoever.

The puppet collector gaped, "_You have to be shitting me!"_

Gaara stared blankly at him, he didn't even raise a finger to his salted omelet. Carefully and quietly he watched his brother gawk stupidly.

"How about love?" Temari questioned hushed.

Kankuro responded hotly. "Yeah, like I'll let my baby brother write some stupid cheesy, corny, love-sick, dramatic soap opera! I rather-"

"It's tattooed on your forehead." She commented, completely ignoring Kankuro. Temari sipped her tea. "He doesn't care about the genre and, it's something people want and need. What have you got to lose?"

* * *

IV. Twilight

* * *

"_What?_"

"Yeah, it'll be kinda cool. Just like the last book in Twilight how Bella did one side of the story, then Jacob and then back to Bella. Something like that. Except, we do each of our sides and then we write the last part together." Sakura said smartly.

"But if we split equally, we each get roughly thirty three pages." Gaara countered, as much as he wanted to object- _this girl is smart_.

"Cool, hm? Hey, do you want to do something later? It's the weekend and my friends are partying and I'm not really much of a partier." She said it so casually, Gaara had to blink a few times.

A pause. "Ok. What do you want to-"

"Meet me in the library around six and wear boots- or Timberlands, or whatever they're called."

Sakura poked his cheek and left him with wide eyes.

* * *

V. Neon

* * *

The weather was changing, it was starting to get colder and colder and not sweltering. Gaara did not like the cold. He was practically raised in a desert. He waited for fifteen minutes and heard boots crunching leaves. He looked to the left to see Sakura carrying a large backpack.

"Sorry, I'm late. Had to grab something for tonight."

"Do I want to know what's in the backpack?" He asked dryly.

She rolled her eyes in fake exasperation and then grinned. "Well since you asked so _nicely, _this" She shook the bag, "Is glow in the dark paintballs and two guns. Now I have pink and green. Which color do you want?"

In the end there was only one answer.

* * *

VI. x + y = us

* * *

Math was horrible he concluded, trigonometry was the base of evil. He spent countless hours consuming coffee and rewriting math equations and he was just really really _tired_. Seriously why the hell did he need to learn triangles if he was going to do business.

A rapt of two knocks surfaced on his door. Deciding that he needed a distraction, graciously he rose to open the door.

"Knock Knock." Sakura said as he opened the door. She was wearing white jeans, a black halter top with a red leather jacket and some boots.

"Where are you going?" He inquired grumpy, silently he opened the door for her to enter.

"_We_ are going to grab some dinner and then check out the ice ring." She said emphasizing the 'we.'

"I have _math homework_ and do not have time to go ice skating." He said blackly, irritation washing on his face.

Sakura blinked and walked towards his desk and looked at the sheet. "All you have to do is move the x and subtract the rest." She scribbled a few things on the sheet and nodded. Sakura shoved the paper into his chest and Gaara scowled.

"_How_?"

"Math is fairly simple. It's like a game, move and maneuver. There, now change. I'll wait outside." Sakura retorted blasé and she closed the door shut as she made her way outside his dorm room.

Gaara was certain for one thing, he will _never_ find someone like Sakura again.

* * *

VII. Distraction

* * *

Gaara sat for the first time in his room and started his semester project. He stared blankly at his computer screen, thinking and then drawing a blank.

_What _was he supposed to write about here?

_Love_. Now what did he know about love. _Love hurts, love has sacrifices, love kills, love destroys, love is like sunshine, love can make you melt into chocolate and then smile when it rains_. _Love is-_ his mind flashed _Sakura_.

He shook his head and began to write.

_It was a warm September morning, the sun lay hidden behind the cottony clouds. I couldn't really remember when I noticed her. Maybe it was the way she sat, legs crossed and the tip of her foot tapping the pathway. Or maybe it was the way she looked in wonder at the birds that started to sing their sweet tune. Or maybe it was the ridiculously blue colored hat she wore. She sat on the bench in the park, coffee in hand and smile on her face. But something told me stop and take a minute to just __**look**__ at her. _

"Hey Gaara? You wanna go grab some dinner? I need a distraction!" Sakura's muffled voice mingled with her soft knocking upon his dorm door. He looked at the time and realize he hadn't eaten lunch.

"Yeah, give me a minute." Gaara called out and typed his last few sentences before saving it.

_Her face distracted me. My mind went blank when I saw her, and when she laughed, I'm pretty sure the world got distracted too._

* * *

VII. Innocent Innuendo

* * *

"Would you believe me if I told you I never had tempura?" He asked, his head tilting to the side as he picked up the vegetable.

Sakura's jaw dropped slightly, "You're joking, right?"

"No."

She frowned, "Well then try it, dammit! It's my favorite, now eat. Try it with the dipping sauce."

Gaara's lips twisted and he dipped the zucchini in the tempura sauce and popped into his mouth. He rubbed the dipping sauce that dribbled down his mouth with his thumb and then sucked the offending liquid. "This actually isn't that bad."

Sakura watched dry mouthed and Gaara could not understand why she was just staring at him and not making a sound. "What?" He tried again.

Instantly Sakura turned a bright pink and mumbled something unintelligibly, then continued to eat her shrimp and not make eye contact.

Gaara realizes, that she's adorable when she blushes.

* * *

IX. Egypt

* * *

"I'm telling you man, you like her!" His older brother exclaimed, hands in the air and eyes wide.

He scoffs, "No, I don't."

"Denial is just a river in Egypt." Temari sang amusedly, her eyebrows waggled in a roguish matter.

He scowls and frowns. He can't possibly be in love with that little pixie, she was small, smart, a little loud, had really bright eyes, a pretty smile and her laugh sounds like bells-

Gaara groans, "Aw hell."

_He really does like her._

* * *

X. Fall

* * *

He was halfway done with his semester project. Page eighteen and he was typing away on his computer.

_One day she took me to a lake. She told me this was her special hiding place, when her parents were fighting, when she was swamped with assignments, when she wanted to strangle the daylights out of her friends, or when she simply just wanted to think. She called it her great escape and struck a Gwen Stefani pose and then I laughed. She said she never took anyone here, except me and I felt happy. _

_The lake was a clear blue and the clouds reflected in the water like soft petals. The lake was surrounded by cherry trees and rose bushes. She smiled and told me that she was glad that I came. _

"_I never thought I'd take anyone here. It's sort of private. But I don't regret it."_

Gaara stops typing and realizes.

_I'm falling in love with her._

* * *

XI. Pumpkin Spice

* * *

Gaara spends his morning looking outside the window of the small café. His coffee was cold and his muffin was starting to become stale. He didn't think it's possible that he could fall in love, he heard rumors of people saying that he could not fall in love. And he believed them. But she proved them wrong.

Vaguely he could hear the door open and close. Suddenly, he was faced to face with startling sage orbs. Before he could register _just what the hell happened_, she placed a coffee mug on his table and smiled.

"You're becoming grumpy Gaara, I got your favorite." Sakura answered his wide eyed question.

Favorite?

Gaara judiciously sipped the mug and he felt his mouth go slack. It was pumpkin spiced coffee with skim milk and cinnamon. How did she even know what his favorite coffee was, he didn't tell her- he couldn't remember telling her.

To answer his unasked question, she continued. "I ran into Temari today. I didn't know she was your sister, she's in my Brit Lit class. I told her about our assignment and then she told me to get you coffee because, apparently…" She stopped to glare at him. "You ran into the door this morning."

"Are you sleeping properly, Gaara?" She asked fiercely.

"I'm fine." He said blankly. He cursed his sister for making him seem weak.

"That isn't what I asked." Sakura bit out, her eyes softened. "I want to know if you're okay."

Gaara stared at her. "Why?"

"Why, what?" She asked confused.

"Why do you care? Why do you want to know if I'm okay? It's not your problem. I just don't understand why you bother to keep this up. It's-"

Sakura threw his stale muffin at his face. "Don't be stupid. You're my friend. I want you to be okay. I want you to be happy. Because that's what friends do and-"

This time Gaara cut her off. He grabbed her by the collar till his forehead touched hers. "No you're not my friend."

Sakura looks hurt, her eyes glossy and her hands trembling. Gaara let his hand brush her soft pink hair. "You're much more than that."

And Sakura's heart stutters, her breath stolen.

* * *

XII. December

* * *

_It was time for her to leave, her parents were expecting her and he didn't want to let her hand go. The airport was flooded with people. He was scared, scared that if he let her go, he would never see her again. _

_She smiled at him. "You know I'll come back, right?"_

_He frowned, "You will forget about me."_

_She glares at him, "You foolish man. I couldn't, even if I tried, I cannot forget you."_

_She placed a finger on his lip to prevent him from speaking. Her green eyes sparkled with quirkiness. "I need you and I will always want you. That's not something I can just forget. You are everything I think about. That will never change."_

_She kissed him for the last time and he let her go. _

…

"Sabaku and Haruno A+."

"Thank you, sir."

* * *

Hi guys! Senior year is crazy, because college and admissions and SAT's and I'm slowly losing my mind.

**Please review**, for my birthday (_two days, shhh!)_

_:) _


End file.
